AUSA GSA pilot program testing the feasibility of using TIGI honeycomb collectors for government buildings successfully finalized. Performance, outperforming other flat collectors in line with expectations

The General Service Administration (GSA) USA, in charge of 9,600 government buildings reported completion of evaluation of TIGI’s innovative renewable technologies. The energy efficiency pilots were initiated by the US government within its Green Proving Ground (GPG) program and monitored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and completed successfully.

The report, released by the GSA summarized the results from two test-bed locations, the Major General Emmett J. Bean Federal Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, and the GSA Regional Headquarters Building in Auburn, Washington.

Among the main conclusions of the pilot:

Measured efficiencies matched expectations and were within 2% of predictions

TIGI's collectors were found to have superior performance over other flat plate collectors. When used with a system design, “in which heat is added to an already-existing hot-water recirculation loop (as was the case in Auburn), HSTC should outperform other flat-plate collectors due to its efficiency at high inlet temperatures. This advantage will be greatest in cold climates.”

I addition, the pilot demonstrated that water heating in government buildings is economically viable in multiple scenarios and in many climates. It was concluded that systems should be initially installed where water is currently heated by electricity (~25% of the GSA buildings) and especially in places of constant high daily demand.

TIGI reported that it has no indication yet regarding any implementation of a deployment plan by the GSA, yet it is optimistic about participating in such plan when it materializes.

TIGI’s CEO, Zvi Klier commented: “we are very happy to have completed this successful pilot program with The USA government. The results of this comprehensive study monitored by NREL prove once again the potential in TIGI’s high efficiency solar thermal collectors and the superiority of other aspects of our technology like the overheating prevention. The completion of the pilot comes in very good timing for us, as we recently completed our SRCC certification process, which enables participation in sponsored government plans, and eligibility for federal and state support programs for renewable energy in the United States.

We look forward for future cooperation with the USA government, which presents for TIGI a huge opportunity for a unique foothold in the US market in General.

In addition to the activities with the GSA, TIGI is currently participating in a BIRD funded project, jointly with a USA-based company, for the development and supply of heating systems for the US dairy farm market segment. Our solution will provide heated water at ~190OF (90OC) for line washing to eliminate illness-causing bacteria in the dairy process”.

About TIGI:

TIGI developed the world’s most efficient solar/thermal collector and the first to provide a commercially viable solution for cold and temperate climates based on transparent insulation honeycomb technology. TIGI’s Honeycomb Collector can produce year-round heat energy at lower costs than any other known alternatives, including electricity and fossil fuels in domestic, commercial and industrial applications.

About GPG:

The Green Proving Ground program leverages GSA’s real estate portfolio to test innovative building technologies and provide recommendations on their deployment. The program helps GSA meet its sustainability goals with actionable data that informs investment decisions targeted at reducing energy- and water-use.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), focuses on creative answers to today's energy challenges. From breakthroughs in fundamental science to new clean technologies to integrated energy systems that power our lives, NREL researchers are transforming the way the nation and the world use energy.

TIGI is proud to announce that its honeycomb collector (HC1-A) received SRCC certification!

The SRCC (Solar Rating & Certification Corporation) certification (SRCC standard 100-2014-07) for TIGI's HC1-A collector was granted after completion of a series of required tests to the collector’s performance, durability and safety.

TIGI’s honeycomb collector is the first ever Transparent Insulation collector to receive the Solar Keymark certification.

The collector is equiped with an integral proprietary overheating prevention mechanism and implements hermetically sealed case to prolong longetivity of high performance by avoiding "breathing" of humidity and dust.

Testing of the collectors was done by SPF in Rapperswil, one of the leading European research institutes.

The certification is another important milestone in TIGI’s product development cycle, it is an important benchmark in the introduction of TIGI’s product to the US market, and will also enable TIGI’s products to be recognized by US state-of-the-art rating system, to introduce a mechanism to develop consumer confidence and to take part in tax credit schemes and other solar incentive programs.

About SRCC

The Solar Rating & Certification COrporation (SRCC) is a non-profit organization, and is the only US national certification program established solely for solar thermal products. It is also the only national certification organization whose programs are the direct result of the combined efforts of state organizations and an industry association involved in the administration of standards.

The Solar Rating & Certification Corporation currently administers a certification, rating and labeling program for solar collectors and a similar program for complete solar water heating systems.

TIGI was selected to present its patented collector level Overheating Prevention Device in SHC conference that will be held in Istanbul, between 2-4 December, 2015.

The SHC - Solar Heating and Cooling - for Buildings and Industry conference, a conference of the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Programme and the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF), is the premier annual event for solar professionals in heating and cooling applications.

SHC 2015 is hosted by GÜNDER, the Turkish section of the International Solar Energy Society and will take place in Istanbul, Turkey. It leads researchers, market specialists and industry to the bridge between two continents. The conference program will bring together the latest developments in solar heating and cooling and highlight local market success.

The honeycomb collector is on its way to becoming a new category in solar thermal. Combining the thermal efficiency of evacuated collectors with the collection efficiency of flat plate collectors, honeycomb collectors open up new opportunities in the process heat and cold climate sectors of solar thermal heat. Pioneering work by TIGI’s founders on transparently insulated solar thermal collectors from the 1990s demonstrated the performance advantages in terms of efficiency at high temperature differentials between collector and environment. This work is now in the public domain.

However, since 2010, TIGI has invested heavily in R&D to overcome the key challenge in honeycomb collector productization – overheating. Recently, the US and Japanese patent offices have allowed broad claims protecting TIGI’s Overheat Protection Device in several different embodiments. Similar claims are pending in many other geographies including the Chinese and European patent offices. Furthermore, an additional invention disclosure, describing multiple applications of transparently insulated solar thermal collectors has been allowed in China and is also pending in multiple additional geographies. All in all, TIGI’s current portfolio comprises 7 patent families ranging from those mentioned above to our most recent application for an in-line heater integrated honeycomb storage collector, which received a clean search report from the EPO.

TIGI, the Honeycomb Collector Company, today announced that it has completed the installation of another commercial solar hot water system.

The system, a 25 m² collector array - was installed by ChenLiquid Heater Corp. Ltd. (a system integrator) in the Southern city of Arad, on the rooftop of a Unilever food factory. It is retrofitted to become part of an existing system generating heat energy for the industrial needs at the plant. The system is expected to provide close to 100% of the heat consumption required in summer days, and ~ 75% annual Solar Fraction for the commercial hot water process it serves.

The first few days of operation in cold winter days show excellent performance.

Mr. Daniel Coriat, System Integrator of Liquid Heating Corp. Ltd. Said: “We selected TIGI’s collector after a long assessment project we made during the design phase. After the initial run up period we are extremely happy with our choice. The collectors were very easy to install, and the integration process to the overall system was smooth and flawless. The initial output from the collectors seems to exceed our expectations. We look forward to working with TIGI in future projects”.

Zvika Klier, TIGI’s CEO, said “We are very excited about the completion of this commercial installation and for catering for the needs of such large industrial player. We are confident that our system’s high performance and overall attractive cost per kWh will lead to significant savings and quick Return of Investment for Unilever, and that this installation will serve as showcase for other factories with similar heat requirements. We expect to complete and report the installation of another large industrial solar installation early 2015”.

Moshe Ben-Yishai, TIGI’s VP of Sales, said “Our transparent insulation collector design is ideal for industrial and commercial applications where the target temperature range is 70-100 °C. The system also implements our patent-pending collector-level overheating protection as well as the sealed case design which will keep the Negev dust outside of the collector, ensuring long life of this highly performing system.”

About TIGI

TIGI developed the world’s most efficient solar/thermal collector and the first to provide a commercially viable solution for cold and temperate climates based on transparent insulation

Honeycomb technology. TIGI’s Honeycomb Collector can produce year-round heat energy at lower costs than any other known alternatives, including electricity and fossil fuels in domestic, commercial and industrial applications.

About Chen Liquid Heater Corp. Ltd.

Chen Liquid Heater Ltd. is a family owned company located in South- Western Israel (Negev). Chen specializes in the planning and installation of energy-saving projects primarily for heating water. The Company manufactures and markets a unique electromagnetic system, based on the induction method and also provides modern heat pumps, solar panels and tanks accompanied by a sophisticated control board. The equipment is fully remote-controlled with adapted command systems to enable the customer to achieve significant savings on their energy expenses.

With over 20 years of experience, Chen is committed to supplying the customers with an optimally adjusted heating system. Several hundred projects have been carried out nationwide with satisfaction in various sectors. In many cases, Ma'ayan, the patented unique induction unit,has provided high benefits to the system.

After the 12 month period, TIGI's colector demonstrated outstanding results in all the tested parameters. The OPD proved to be working perfectly, The minor 1% decrase in Eta0 was defined by SPF as "briliant result" for a collector after 1 year stagnation, and the collector showed no signs of outgassing of humidity.

SPF mentioned that based on experience with other collectors, the above are good indicators that the collector and the OPD will work as expected, also for a much more prolonged time of operation.

TIGI, the Honeycomb Collector company, today announced it has completed the installation of a commercial solar hot water system in Israel.

The system - a 40 m² collector array - is installed in Kibbutz Urim, and provides heat for a commercial laundry. Each day the laundry uses 5 m³ of water at 80 °C. In sunny summer days the system is designed to supply 100% of the energy needs of the laundry. If needed, additional energy is provided by an on-line gas heater.

The first few days of operation show very good performance. In some of the days (in March) the water temperature in the tank reached above 90 °C (!).

TIGI presented a preview of its concept for a Domestic Hot Water (DHW)
system for Central/Northern European climates.

This innovative system uses the insulation advantages of TIGI's proprietary
Transparent Insulation (TI) technology for an Integrated Storage Collector
approach, implementing a tank inside the collector. This results with lower initial
investment, lower running cost for supplementary energy and lower maintenance
expenditure. In this design, TI is used not only to improve performance of the
collectors but also to reduce cost related to storage. There is also no need
for an indoor space for tank.

With this system TIGI aims to offer a combination of highest performance and
lowest overall cost, which TIGI expects to be very successful in the DHW
marketplace - the largest current market for solar thermal collectors.

Team Israel also awarded 1st place for Energy Balance and 4th place overall!

The competition which took place in China during August 2013, included teams from 20 countries with one challenging target in mind: constructing a "zero energy building" - one that generates all of its energy it consumes independently.

The prestigious project aims to achieve long term energy efficiency in China local construction industry.

The competition was organized by the Chinese and US governments, and the evaluation criteria included not only energy generation and consumption, but also building aesthetics and standard of living.

The design phase took over 18 months, and initial construction of the building was made in Israel. The building was then disassembled and shipped to China for re-constructioning. It was constructed by Team Israel on a 24mx24m area, and contained 70 sqm of living space (intended for w persons) and a patio.

Zvika Klier, CEO of TIGI said: "We are glad to have been selected to take part of Team Israel in this prestigiouscompetition, and are proud our collector was selected to represent the team as one of the most innovative technologies developed in our country in the space of water heating in the past decade".

For the 6th time, technology
network Munich Network hosted the Munich Cleanteach Conference in the Bavarian
capital on November 22, 2012. This year’s event focused on “Innovation for the
Energy Transition”.

As quoted from 6th
Cleantech Conferece website: “Tigi’s innovative product Honeycomb Collector
impressed the jury the best by combining high efficiency and material
durability. The structure in between the glass cover and the absorber sheet is
made from polycarbonates, which keep convective and radiative heat losses to a
minimum. The TIGI technology leads to stagnation temperatures of 250 to 300 °C.
The overheating protection is based on a separate pipe system with its own
liquids on the collector’s back. This means it works whether or not water is
circulating in the primary loop.”

About TIGI

TIGI
developed the world’s most efficient solar/thermal collector and the first to
provide a commercially viable solution for cold and temperate climates based on
transparent insulation honeycomb technology. TIGI’s Honeycomb Collector can
produce year-round heat energy at lower costs than any other known
alternatives, including electricity and fossil fuels in domestic, commercial
and industrial applications.

TIGI is proud to announce that its honeycomb collector (HC.1) received Solar Keymark certification!

The Solar Keymark certification (12975) for TIGI's HC.1 collector was granted after completion of a series of required tests to the collector’s performance, durability and safety, and following an inspection of the manufacturing plant used by TIGI for its production.

TIGI’s honeycomb collector is the first ever Transparent Insulation collector to receive the Solar Keymark certification.

The collector is equiped with an integral proprietary overheating prevention mechanism and implements hermetically sealed case to prolong longetivity of high performance by avoiding "breathing" of humidity and dust.

Testing of the collectors was done by SPF in Rapperswil, one of the leading European research institutes.

The certification is another important milestone in TIGI’s product development cycle, it is an important benchmark in the introduction of TIGI’s product to the marketplace, and will also enable TIGI’s products to enjoy European government subsidy schemes.

About Solar Keymark

The Solar Keymark Association is an official quality mark of the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), developed with ESTIF to overcome the varying testing and certification requirements in different EU countries. It guarantees the quality of solar thermal products (see solar hot water), in particular panels or complete compact systems.

The Solar Keymark is a voluntary third-party certification mark for solar thermal products, demonstrating to end-users that a product conforms to the relevant European standards and fulfills additional requirements. The Solar Keymark is used in Europe and increasingly recognized worldwide. The Solar Keymark is a CEN/CENELEC European mark scheme, solely dedicated to:

Solar thermal collectors (based on European standard series EN 12975)

Factory made solar thermal systems (based on European standard series EN 12976)

The Solar Keymark was developed by the European Solar Thermal Industry Federation (ESTIF) and CEN (European Committee for Standardisation) in close co-operation with leading European test labs and with the support of the European Commission. It is the main quality label for solar thermal products and is widely spread across the European market and beyond.

About SPF

SPF Institute für solartechnik, located in Rapperswil Siwtzelrand is one of the leading research and testing institutes for Solar Thermal technologies.

TIGI is happy to announce that its
Solar Thermal Honeycomb collector was selected by the U.S. General Services
Administration (GSA) as one of 12 technologies to participate in the 2012 Green Proving Ground (GPG) program
that will test innovative technologies for potential operational savings in GSA
federal buildings. The intention of the program is to identify emerging technologies
that will increase efficiency and reduce costs in federal buildings

GSA works with the Department of
Energy’s National Laboratories to test the viability of energy efficient
technologies that can be installed in buildings across the country. The
technologies for the GPG program are selected for their potential to help
reduce operating costs and to meet the sustainability goals in President
Obama’s executive order on environmental, energy and economic performance.

“The potential of the USA market
for renewable energy is huge. We are proud to have been selected to participate
in this visionary program of the GSA” said Zvika Klier, CEO of TIGI. “We
believe that the enhanced efficiency of our Honeycomb collector will
demonstrate substantial cost savings to the GSA Federal buildings, enabling the
GSA to save both energy and taxpayer dollars.”

As part of the program, GSA announced
it will test and evaluate 12 emerging sustainable building technologies in
select federal facilities. Results from these evaluations will inform GSA
decision makers as to the potential these technologies have to increase
performance of GSA’s buildings by reducing operational costs, increasing
environmental efficiency, and assisting industry in deploying new technologies
and practices into the broader market. This
year’s technologies include wireless lighting controls, LED luminaires, glazing
retrofit coatings, wireless pneumatic thermostats, solar thermal collectors and
water saving landscape irrigation systems.

GSA has jurisdiction over approximately
9,600 federally owned and leased buildings across the country and has the real
estate portfolio needed to broadly test and install these technologies.

For more information on the 12 new technologies selected for
evaluation as part of GSA’s GPG this year, as well as results from last year’s
program, visit http://www.gsa.gov/GPG.

The 2012 Global Cleantech 100, the annual list of the most promising private cleantech companies, produced by Cleantech Group, has been unveiled. These are the global companies expected to make the biggest impact on clean technology over the next 5 to 10 years.

Drawing on its own data and research, combining it with the weighted qualitative judgments of hundreds of people and the viewpoints of an expert panel, Cleantech Group curated the 2012 list from over 8,285 companies from 85 countries. These companies were weighted and scored to create a short list of 236 companies presented to the expert panel for final input. The end result was 100 companies from 13 countries.

Cleantech Group LLC. presented TIGI as Company Of The Week for the week of July 5-12, 2012.

About Cleantech Group LLC.

Since 2002, the Cleantech Group has been providing Fortune 1000 global corporations, investors, entrepreneurs and policy-makers with the latest industry market intelligence through subscription-based research, global industry networking events, and world-class custom research services. By focusing entirely on the companies innovating in clean technology, Cleantech Group helps its clients make critical business decisions that foster growth, reduce cost, and meet consumer and government demands for improved environmental quality.

The Cleantech Group also leads the Global Cleantech 100 list, which names the top 100 private companies in clean technology, the companies that are best positioned to solve tomorrow’s clean technology challenges.

TIGI’s Honeycomb Collector - the first of its kind to enter the market - was awarded the prestegious Intersolar AWARD prize!

The Intersolar AWARD, the award for innovation in the international solar industry, has established itself as the industry’s flagship and draws worldwide public attention to nominees and winners.

TIGI was selected from a multitude of innovative applications by an independent panel of judges, for their differentiation, innovation and ground breaking products or services.

The AWARD was announced in Intersolar 2012 in Munich, Germany, on June 13, 2012.

When asked about the unique features of the honeycomb collector, TIGI’s CEO, Zvika Klier commented: “Transparent insulation enables a significant step function performance improvement over conventional flat plate and evacuated tube collectors. In addition, TIGI’s collector implements an integrated Overheat Prevention Device and a sealed case, together ensuring longevity of the high performance and lower system cost. The collector will be introduced to the market later this year and we expect it can make a big change in terms of performance and return on investment for applications such as space heating / cooling and process heat”.

The TIGI Solar team presents at booth B2-350 of the Intersolar 2012 (June 13-16, Munich, Germany) and will be happy to answer further questions.

The Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) announced 37 industry partners who are participating in the Center’s Building Technology Showcase, a first-of-its-kind research and demonstration building for sustainable technologies in the City of Boston’s Innovation District. These partners are contributing a combined total of $2.7 million in advanced energy technologies and services for the building, and commit to working with Fraunhofer CSE on research projects to be deployed and integrated into the new “living laboratory.”

Fraunhofer CSE is performing a deep energy retrofit and renovation of the historic, 100-year-old building at 5 Channel Center in Boston to transform it into a sustainable energy R&D facility. The Center’s goal is for the Building Technology Showcase to play an important role in accelerating the adoption and acceptance of cutting-edge building energy technologies in Massachusetts and the United States. The building will be Fraunhofer CSE’s new headquarters, housing its advanced research labs and staff.

TIGI, an Israel based technology company, is the maker of the Honeycomb Collector, a Solar-Thermal collector for hot water generation. The TIGI Honeycomb collector uses a highly innovative technology and design to insulate the collector from a colder environment. The collector is currently undergoing certification for Europe and is expected to greatly improve economies in solar-thermal projects thanks to superior efficiencies, especially in colder regions as in the American Northeast.

“Fraunhofer CSE’s diverse list of participants shows that companies from around the world are drawn to Massachusetts’ vibrant and growing clean energy sector,” said Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) Chief Executive Officer Patrick Cloney. “We are thrilled to see three companies—Pythagoras Solar, Oree and TIGI—who have either participated in the Governor’s trade mission to Israel or in MassCEC’s Global Clean Energy Week, sign on to use this facility because they see the value of doing business in Massachusetts.”

“Our participation in this project is consistent with our belief in the significant potential for solar heating, both for sanitary water and space heating, in North America, especially in large scale industrial and commercial applications” said TIGI’s CEO Zvika Klier. “Solar heating represents a tremendous market need that could be finallyaddressed with viable economies through the launch of TIGI’s honeycomb collectors.”

“Developing sustainable technologies will improve energy efficiency and create jobs,” Congressman Stephen F. Lynch said. “I commend Fraunhofer CSE for bringing together such a diverse group of partners to take this project beyond a research lab, developing it as a learning environment for the next generation of clean energy leaders.”

“We are committed to making the building a venue where everyone—from seasoned architects and construction executives to students still deciding their future career paths—can visualize the performance and potential of the technologies incorporated into the building,” said Nolan Browne, Managing Director of Fraunhofer CSE. “Our goal is to present the information in innovative ways that engage visitors and create demand for these energy-saving systems and sustainable products in the market.”

About Fraunhofer CSE: The Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE) is an applied research and development laboratory conducting R&D for industry and government clients in the areas of Solar Photovoltaics, Building Technologies and Technology Commercialization for early-stage cleantech companies. Fraunhofer CSE’s mission is to foster economic development through the commercialization of clean energy technologies for the benefit of society.

TIGi Solar has been selected by an independent panel and presented at the prestigious ETT Cleantech Summit in Geneva, Switzerland, which took place on July 6th and 7th 2011 at The Globe of Science and Innovation at CERN. The selection committee included members from major investors including GE Global Research, Intel Capital and Capricorn Ventures.

TIGI was selected in this prestigious European Tech Tour summit, as one of the top 25 upcoming and leading European cleantech companies – out of hundreds of companies that applied for such recognition.

TIGI’s CEO, Zvika Klier who travelled to Geneva to present at the event commented “We are thrilled by the opportunity to meet major players in the sustainability sector and to present our case. We were one of only six companies selected from throughout Europe in the Energy Generation sector and the only solar thermal company – a major recognition of the significance of our breakthrough”.